Allow Texas Cities to Use Automatic Traffic Cameras to Fine Vehicle Owners for Running Red
The Issue
For more than 14 years, I have lived in the Dallas–Fort Worth area and have become increasingly concerned about drivers running red lights. In McKinney, I personally witness vehicles entering intersections after the signal has turned red almost every week.
This is not a minor traffic violation. Red-light running can cause deadly right-angle crashes involving drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, and families simply trying to cross an intersection. As a parent, I worry about the safety of my children as they begin navigating Texas roads.
Texas previously allowed local governments to use automated traffic cameras to identify red-light violations and issue civil fines to vehicle owners. That authority was largely ended by House Bill 1631 in 2019.
I am asking Texas lawmakers to restore that option but with strong safeguards:
- Fines should be civil penalties assigned to the vehicle owner.
- Drivers and owners should have a clear process to contest a citation.
- Vehicle owners should be able to identify another driver when appropriate.
- Cameras should be clearly marked and independently reviewed by law enforcement.
- Programs should protect privacy and prohibit unreasonable use of collected data.
- Revenue should support transportation safety, emergency response, or trauma care not become a general revenue source.
I created the Texas Red-Light Fatality Tracker to document publicly reported Texas fatalities associated with red-light running during the past five years. These reports show the human cost of dangerous intersection violations.
Research from the Federal Highway Administration, the Campbell Collaboration, and peer-reviewed transportation studies indicates that properly designed red-light-camera programs can reduce red-light violations, injury crashes, and severe right-angle collisions.
Texas cities should have the ability to choose this safety tool when local data shows it is needed. Automated enforcement should supplement, not replace, traditional police enforcement, traffic engineering, and public education.
Please sign this petition and urge Texas lawmakers to restore cities’ authority to issue fair, transparent civil penalties based on verified automatic traffic-camera evidence.
Together, we can help make Texas intersections safer and prevent avoidable deaths.
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The Issue
For more than 14 years, I have lived in the Dallas–Fort Worth area and have become increasingly concerned about drivers running red lights. In McKinney, I personally witness vehicles entering intersections after the signal has turned red almost every week.
This is not a minor traffic violation. Red-light running can cause deadly right-angle crashes involving drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, and families simply trying to cross an intersection. As a parent, I worry about the safety of my children as they begin navigating Texas roads.
Texas previously allowed local governments to use automated traffic cameras to identify red-light violations and issue civil fines to vehicle owners. That authority was largely ended by House Bill 1631 in 2019.
I am asking Texas lawmakers to restore that option but with strong safeguards:
- Fines should be civil penalties assigned to the vehicle owner.
- Drivers and owners should have a clear process to contest a citation.
- Vehicle owners should be able to identify another driver when appropriate.
- Cameras should be clearly marked and independently reviewed by law enforcement.
- Programs should protect privacy and prohibit unreasonable use of collected data.
- Revenue should support transportation safety, emergency response, or trauma care not become a general revenue source.
I created the Texas Red-Light Fatality Tracker to document publicly reported Texas fatalities associated with red-light running during the past five years. These reports show the human cost of dangerous intersection violations.
Research from the Federal Highway Administration, the Campbell Collaboration, and peer-reviewed transportation studies indicates that properly designed red-light-camera programs can reduce red-light violations, injury crashes, and severe right-angle collisions.
Texas cities should have the ability to choose this safety tool when local data shows it is needed. Automated enforcement should supplement, not replace, traditional police enforcement, traffic engineering, and public education.
Please sign this petition and urge Texas lawmakers to restore cities’ authority to issue fair, transparent civil penalties based on verified automatic traffic-camera evidence.
Together, we can help make Texas intersections safer and prevent avoidable deaths.
The Decision Makers
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Petition created on July 25, 2026